We also found that woman-positive activities benefit program workers. We are mostly women and our work has not been recognized or valued. We need to begin at a program level to give some recognition to the work that women do.

• Why would some women not want or be able to do woman-positive activities?

Overwhelmingly, we identified fear as the major obstacle which would prevent women from undertaking woman-positive activities. Fear of censure or punishment, fear of violence, of losing jobs or status in the community.

This fear is not based on imagined constraints, but real ones - including lack of support from co-workers and administration; lack of funding, space, or childcare to make such an activity possible; lack of cultural sensitivity. This fear is often based on a hierarchy that is set up between women. Those of us who advocate for change are seen as dangerous or marginal. Those of us who are lesbian or feminist or childless are told that we are not "real" women, and that if we were "real" we would not want things to change.

Some women would not be able to take on woman-positive activities because it is simply too personally and professionally dangerous. Some women may not support the idea of "woman-positive." The idea may conflict with their religion or with traditional cultural values. For some women, doing something woman-positive may seem like an imposition of individual values and issues.

Also, women may not be able to take on anything in addition to what they are already doing. A woman-positive activity could be seen as an extra and few women have time for anything extra.

Some activities are simply easier for some women to do.

Some women may not be aware of what it means to be woman-positive. They may not understand the issue because they have never experienced any obstacles. They may not want to become aware of the difficulties they face because they are women.

Some women do not believe that the notion of woman-positive applies to their situations. They see this idea coming from women with privilege and they may wonder if it is racist. The way in which "feminist" or "woman-positive" activities are planned and implemented often excludes groups of women because of assumptions and processes that are racist or culturally insensitive or ignorant.

Some of us know that being woman-positive will mean a change and we are afraid of what that change might mean. Crossing the line and becoming feminist may mean losing even more. Change may mean that everything familiar is lost. Perhaps our identity will also be lost in the process. That is frightening, exhausting, and too much for some of us to take on. We can only go through change when we have enough strength, courage, and support - when the time is right.